Bryan Nelson’s journey into wood turning and woodworking
was more of an accident then a thought out progression.
It started in his Junior High School years in a shop class
that had a lathe. It was a terrifying experience for him,
with many near mishaps on the lathe. He did complete his
project but had nothing to do with the lathe or woodwork
for many, many years.

Until much later in life he found a trailer load of discarded
church pews and decided to try and make something useful
from them. With a second hand radial arm saw and a planner
he began to build benches, tables, bookcases and beds for
family and friends. This hobby grew and eventually became
an all-consuming passion. He purchased a lathe and after
sitting in the box for six months he finally set it up and
overcame his fear of spinning wood.

After losing his full time job of 23 years and the job market
not looking for his type of skills or lack of, Bryan, decided
it was time to focus on wood and specifically wood turning.
And boy did he ever! Bryan has turned and sold over 5, 000
bowls and turnings. His work is in every corner of the world
in single setting and large collections. Because of his
wide variety of woods (he has over 160 varieties in the
shop) he is often catering to wood collectors, giving them
a useful design and function to their collection of wood.

Bryan has a great love for wood. He has a childlike excitement
when searching for it and finding the hidden treasures that
Mother Nature hides within. He has a special love for burl.
From Amboyna to Big Leaf Maple to all the Australian Burls
and he always has many hundreds of pounds around the shop.